Team
by HamhaPHKFan
Summary: Rescue Bots/Transformers Prime - Heatwave contacts the Autobot Base, intending to give his report to Optimus, but instead sees an unfamiliar face.


The Rescue Bots unusually busy that week. Surprisingly the events had nothing to do with Doc Greene's experiments blowing up or going out of control. At least, not most of them. There was a new problem almost every day. An island wide power outage, a rock displacement on a mountain road, a lightning storm that knocked down trees, an oil leak in the sea water, some kid accidentally letting go of their balloon.

Needless to say, the Rescue Bots were exhausted.

Blades, Boulder and Chase were sitting on the couch in the bunker of the firehouse. They were discussing about which kind of movie they should watch. Chase once again favored high speed pursuits, though Blades and Boulder wanted to watch something with less action. They were just going to relax and have fun. The Rescue Bots finally had a moment of peace, and they weren't going to waste a second of it.

Heatwave did intend to join them, but there was still something else he had to do before he could rest. He walked to the other end of the bunker, into another room, where a giant screen stood tall, surrounded by buttons and levers with labels written in Cybertronian. The entire system looked alien, but perhaps that was because the ones who used it were.

Heatwave pressed a few of the buttons, watching as the screen buzzed to life. He inputted some numbers and codes, the same ones he used every times he did what he was doing. He heard the screen hum at an even beat, then stood back and attempted to seem formal. They had to give a report every week or so, just to keep Optimus Prime, their leader, informed of important events, and of how their mission on Earth was progressing.

Perhaps Heatwave would once again request to join him in battle.

The screen flickered as a figure formed through the static, and Heatwave was about to start his report before he stopped.

A mech stood there with a smile. He raised his hand in the air in a way that could have been considered a wave if his wrist had been moving. "Hey."

Heatwave didn't recognize the mech. During other calls to Optimus, he had seen the other Autobots of Team Prime in the background, though he hadn't been told their names. He already knew who Bumblebee was, along with three human children, and occasionally two adults.

He had never seen that mech before.

The mech was still grinning away. "Do you need something?"

The question managed to catch Heatwave by surprise, but he refused to show it. "I need to speak to Optimus."

The name made the mech perk up.

"Oh, yeah! He's not here," The mech said with a shrug. He spoke again. "Who are you?"

Heatwave didn't reply right away, trying to figure out if it was a trap by Dr. Morocco, or someone else entirely. But, he could see no threat, so he answered. "Heatwave."

"'Heatwave', huh?" The mech repeated, thinking for a moment before shrugging. "Never heard of you before. You're an Autobot, right? What division are you?"

Once again, Heatwave remained silent. For someone who was seemingly a soldier, he was acting a lot like a child. Heatwave answered anyway, not seeing what harm could come from doing so. "I'm a Rescue Bot."

"A Rescue Bot?" The mech said excitedly. "I've never spoken with one of you before! Are you on Earth?"

It took Heatwave a moment to respond.

"Yes," Heatwave said, eyeing the mech suspiciously. After another moment, he spoke again. "I've never seen you on Earth before."

"I only got here a little while ago," The mech explained with a grin. "I'm Team Prime's new recruit!"

A new recruit. Optimus had permitted that mech to join Team Prime. Something Heatwave had been asking for since he had encountered the Autobot leader on Earth.

Heatwave's optic ridges furrowed. "I see."

Heatwave knew for a fact that he was more mature than that young mech on the screen. He probably even had more experience in fighting. He couldn't understand why Optimus would let some rookie join Team Prime, when he had been asking for the longest time.

The sound of heavy footsteps brought Heatwave out of his thoughts. He turned to face the doorway, where Chase, Boulder, and Blades walked into the room.

"Are you okay, Heatwave?" Boulder asked, looking slightly concerned.

"We heard elevated stress levels in your voice," Chase added.

"I'm fine," Heatwave said, gesturing to the screen. "I was just trying to update Optimus on our mission progr-"

"SMOKESCREEN!"

A loud yell coming from the other end of the call made everyone jump.

Mostly everyone.

Just Blades.

The mech, Smokescreen, turned around rapidly as another mech came into view. He was white and red, and slightly taller than the new recruit. The mech placed his hands on his sides and eyed Smokescreen disapprovingly. "_What_ do you think you're _doing_?"

"Just talking with some Rescue Bots," Smokescreen said casually. "They called to speak with Optimus."

The mech seemed very incredulous. "So you _answered_ without first identifying who it was, _or_ informing me?"

"You left the room!" Smokescreen countered defensively. "I wasn't going to just ignore the call-"

"A-bup-bup!" The mech pointed a finger at Smokescreen threateningly to shut him up before gesturing somewhere offscreen. "Go over there, and be _quiet_."

Smokescreen opened his mouth to say something, but ultimately decided against it, throwing his hands up in mock surrender before walking out of view. The Rescue Bots just watched the scene unfold, for a moment not making a move to speak, before Heatwave stood straight and proceeded to make himself known. "... Are you Team Prime's medic?"

"Yes, yes, what is it?" The mech asked impatiently.

Heatwave raised an optic ridge, but he answered. "I called to give Optimus the Rescue Bots' weekly report."

The mech let out an exasperated sigh, pinching the bridge between his optics, and spoke rather quickly. "Optimus is currently indisposed at the moment, as soon as he returns I will have him contact you."

Before Heatwave could reply, the mech canceled the call, leaving the screen blank.

Heatwave was slightly angry. More insulted than anything. If that rookie was considered a better recruit for Team Prime, than what did that make _him_?

"Was someone yelling?"

The Rescue Bots turned to the doorway, and looked down to see Cody standing there, watching them with interest.

No one said anything for a moment, then Heatwave waved a hand dismissively. "It's fine. I think I just got put on hold."

The silence returned, no one really knowing what to say. After a minute, someone cleared their throat.

"So," Blades said, voice completely calm. "Did you ask to be a part of Team Prime again?"

Heatwave couldn't tell if Blades was being sarcastic or if he was actually being serious. He shook his head anyway. "I was going to, but their newest recruit answered the call first."

Cody spoke up. "Why do you want to be a part of Team Prime so badly?"

"If we get accepted into Team Prime," Heatwave answered. "We'll be able to become a real part of the Autobots."

Cody stared inquisitively, walking up to Heatwave. "Aren't you a Rescue Bot?"

"I don't plan on being a Rescue Bot forever," Heatwave explained with annoyance laced in his tone. "There are more important things I could be doing, like helping to stop the Decepticons."

Cody tiled his head slightly in confusion. "What are 'Decepticons'?"

"They are a group of Cybertronians intending to do the Autobots harm," Chase explained. "Optimus' team specializes in stopping them from succeeding."

"And think of the things we can do once they've been stopped!" Blades chirped up, then let out a happy sigh. "It'd be nice to finally settle down with someone!"

There was almost a full minute of silence.

"Yeah, don't look to us for any volunteers," Heatwave muttered. "And we'll have to actually _be_ part of the battle before we can even think of what we could do once it's over."

Cody thought silently to himself for a moment before speaking. "But, there aren't any Decepticons around here."

"Unless they _are_," Blades whispered, before his voice grew high pitched. "And they're _disguised_. And they're _watching us_."

"That is highly unlikely," Chase said. "If any of the vehicles on Griffin Rock were actually Decepticons in disguise, it's more than likely that they would have already attacked by now."

"That's why we have to join Team Prime," Heatwave affirmed with a nod. "We can help save humanity by stopping the Decepticons where they strike."

Cody looked up at the Rescue Bots, eyebrows raised. "You're leaving?"

"Well, yes. Someday," Boulder said with a soft smile.

"But, you guys can't leave!" Cody protested. "You helped all of those people! Think about what could have happened if you weren't there!"

"A kid would have lost their balloon," Heatwave replied with a roll of his optics. "And it popped almost a minute after we returned it anyway, so that was _worthless_."

Cody shook his head. "Why can't you _stay?_"

Heatwave frowned. "We'll be able to help people there."

"You help people _here_," Cody countered.

"It's not the same, Cody," Heatwave huffed. "We're going to be part of a team that _saves lives_."

Cody continued, looking up to the Rescue Bots almost pleadingly. "I though we _were _a team that _save lives_."

Heatwave paused. That was true. Yes, they did save lives. They were a team. But, the Decepticons...

He needed a moment to think about it.

Or maybe a day.

Or longer.

The screen started buzzing again, indicating an incoming call, and Heatwave had never been more grateful for an interruption.

After a brief moment of static, the familiar face of Optimus Prime appeared on screen. He looked over all of the beings in the room, both Cybertronian and human, before settling on the one closest to the screen, greeting with a nod. "Heatwave. Is there something wrong?"

Heatwave stayed silent, looking behind him, where the rest of his team stood, along with the human child. He watched them for a long moment, before turning back to the screen.

"No, sir. Everything's fine," Heatwave answered. "I just called to give our report."


End file.
